Matchday Thread: Port Vale v Grimsby Town

[Valiant in Brum]

There was a programme on Radio 5 on Tuesday about managing in the Football League. At one point they had Michael Brown on the end of the phone talking about his recent departure and his time at Vale. He said two things of significance. "At Port Vale Football Club they have a chairman in Norman Smurthwaite who doesn't understand football." He goes on to speak about the help he got from Colin Garlick. Later he said, in relation to his recruitment, "The most difficult part was the recruitment side - nobody wanted to join Port Vale Football Club." He then talks about the very tight budget he had.

 

If you want to listen to it you can find it at about 31 minutes in on this link. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p05hzly3

 

Chris Birchall stated on the radio earlier that the players are on good wages, I understand some of what Brown possibly says but I think he is scapegoating his own rubbishness as a manager. Passing on the blame.

[Sandyford_Lion]

Denton is Kiko mark II.

 

I would not have him in my team. His first job is to defend and find Row Z if necessary. He's been at fault on a number of occasions and in my view ought to have tracked the runner today instead of letting him go and appealing for offside.

 

I thought that generally our three centre backs were fine today. It was two lapses in concentration by Pope and Denton that cost us the two goals and nothing to do with the keeper or the centre backs.

 

It really is a very very hard task to find XI decent players out of this rag tag and bobtail squad of 34. It's exactly like last season - far too many who are not up to scratch and not enough quality.

 

I worry, as others have said, that we might be a long way adrift by January.

 

Our midfield/wide players are the worst I've ever seen in over 50 years. They run around like headless chickens chasing the ball, don't win any 50:50s, don't score goals, don't protect the back four, can't head a ball, lose possession if they're blown on. What do they do? There is zero end product, week after week.

 

Aspin will have nightmares tonight thinking about the task ahead.

 

Brilliant and agree 100% Have said so all season

 

We must have X 12 midfield and wide players on the books and if we played them all we would not score goals or help defend

 

It is the worst squad of midfield players we have ever had

No goals are there from anyone

[Matlock Vale]

The main problem is that the players aren't very good as a collective. Goalkeeper rubbish, kay rubbish, Tonge, pugh no legs or energy no tackle, fight or creativity. Pope very much past it. Wingers today - rubbish. I wish smurthwaite would flick off. He hasn't got a flicking clue the useless bustard.

 

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[pvfcrule]

The majority of these players are useless at best thanks brown for that aspin has his work cut out here how can he mild a team with players that couldn’t get in my 5 a side team!!! I hate to say it but I fear back to back relegations thanks to brown who shouldn’t have got the job last season! He took us down he bought players in and couldn’t save us! In my option he took us down and kept us down!!! I feel for aspin as he has been given a huge task and a damn near impossible one sadly. What is it with us and keepers ...... shocking again made an odd save but hopeless !! Where do we go from here? Can’t bring any players in till January.......... sad times in burslem

[Sandyford_Lion]

There was a programme on Radio 5 on Tuesday about managing in the Football League. At one point they had Michael Brown on the end of the phone talking about his recent departure and his time at Vale. He said two things of significance. "At Port Vale Football Club they have a chairman in Norman Smurthwaite who doesn't understand football." He goes on to speak about the help he got from Colin Garlick. Later he said, in relation to his recruitment, "The most difficult part was the recruitment side - nobody wanted to join Port Vale Football Club." He then talks about the very tight budget he had.

 

If you want to listen to it you can find it at about 31 minutes in on this link. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p05hzly3

 

Not a fan of Brown but I would love to here his story

 

Feel sorry for him with the budget he was given,I believe it would be very poor but the players he did sign have been terrible and far too many.

Maybe his thoughts were that he would get a couple of good ones from somewhere and yes I can believe no one wanted to join the vale

[Wereskintandweknowweare]

Two main issues for me that I hope Aspin will be able to spot and be brave enough to remedy:

 

1) Quickly figure out that 'experience' will not get us out of this mess. Michael Tonge, Danny Pugh, Anthony Kay, Gavin Gunning and Lawrie Wilson are finished as players at FL level. They are all far too slow and don't have the attributes to make up for that lack of pace and fitness. This isn't like when we've signed 'past it' players before - Lee Hughes, Danny Sonner, Brett Angel et al were all still sharp enough mentally to get past their age. Tonge and Pugh in central midfield today was horrible to watch and it's staggering that two of them fail to do the job that Anthony Grant used to do on his own.

 

2) Don't automatically play Pope. This isn't because I think Pope is finished as a player. He's clearly not the player he was, but he's by no means performing worse than anyone else and until today has been isolated all season. The reason I'd prefer Turner in that front three is that it would remove the 'hoofball' option that we've seen so much of this season. It was evident in the 2nd half today that if there's nothing on, every player simply takes the lazy option and whacks the ball upfield in the vague direction of Pope. It's the cowardly, lazy option that absolves them of any blame and heaps it all on Pope - if he doesn't win it, or if he's barged off it then it's his problem. If the front three was devoid of any 'target man', then the players would be exposed for what they are if they took the 'hoofball' option. There would be no alternative than to play to feet or into channels for a mobile front three to work with. I think Pope being on the pitch gives every other player an 'easy' option which is the main reason for our awful 2nd half performances this season as well as our general lack of shots.

 

Team for next week:

 

(4-2-3-1)

 

Boot

 

Denton

Anderson

Smith

 

Gibbons

 

Worrall

Middleton

 

Harness

Whitfield

De Freitas/Stobbs

 

Turner

 

Young, mobile footballers will get us out of this mess. Not 'experienced', slow, hoofball merchants.

Very good post. Think most of us would agree with that team

[Sandyford_Lion]

Very good post. Think most of us would agree with that team

Sorry jjvale team would get us relegated quicker than today's team

The whole midfield would be overrun every game

There would be very few goals,if any

Sorry but Turner is nowhere near a player yet and I am not surprised that he does not get selected each week

It's a shame he did not go out on loan for a season as did smith

[Matlock Vale]

Kay should never play for is again. That shut keeper should sent back on Monday. Send most of the loan players back. Tonge and pugh are well past it.

 

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[Robbie Earle's Perm]

Chris Birchall stated on the radio earlier that the players are on good wages, I understand some of what Brown possibly says but I think he is scapegoating his own rubbishness as a manager. Passing on the blame.

 

Agree listened to the interview live and he was clearly trying to pass the blame.

 

How many times did he call us little or small the patronising plank?

 

He says the budget was small but he’s wasted huge chunks of it in January and then in the summer building massive squads of quantity over quality each time.

[George]

Very good post. Think most of us would agree with that team

 

Really? That's a terrible team IMO.

[Matlock Vale]

Oh and de Fraitas runs a lot, but is a parks player at best. That's me done. Best players today....?

 

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[PV1973]

First half was very good. Our shape caused them a lot of problems in particular with Harness and Gibbons on the right and to a lesser degree Denton on the left with Whitfield. But in addition to that Tonge and Pugh were getting a lot of time on the ball to control the midfield too. We played with energy and it was great to see some desire from the players.

 

Second half they changed their formation to sit players back further and they denied the space for Tonge and Pugh and also Denton and Gibbons, which is why we ended up launching it long. But when that happens in a game we need to find another way, we need to see players dropping in for the ball, strikers coming to feet to receive it instead of just going long. I think we could still have worked some space for the wing backs if we were clever enough but we just didn't adapt. Giving them such a sloppy first goal helped because it gave them something to defend and get players behind the ball. In fact both goals were poor from our point of view. Their lad Dembele was decent, but it would have been nice to see Denton or someone put a tackle in and make it hard for him.

 

Overall I thought we did better but we've come away with nothing and I feel that's down to mistakes again. We created a lot of half chances first half and did second half too, but it's just not dropping for us. Had Whitfield made some better decisions first half I feel we could have created better openings than just him going for it on his own. Positives today were Gibbons, I've seen him play a lot from reserve level and he's a great prospect for us and for someone so young he kept it well too, it's great to see players like him and Smith and Turner break through from the youth levels, Harness linked well until he tired, I thought Gunning did well too and I like his aggression, but arguably his partnership with Denton needs to get better, first half Tonge and Pugh did well too but faded second half and they didn't adapt to get themselves back on the ball second half. Denton was good going forward but had to improve defensively and I think he will in time. Pope battled well and I thought didn't get his share of free kicks, I know he polarises opinion but again he put a shift in.

 

In summary in the first half the formation worked well, but what the players and management need to work on an alternative when the opposition counteracts us.

[ELDERBEZZA]

Can't believe how the game panned out as two contrasting halves for Vale! We could and should have been 3 up by half time! The second half became familiar with the hoof ball returning, mainly due to the static performance of a few players. Tongue and Pugh didn't work and younger legs are needed.Let's give Aspo a chance eh?He's been here 3days!!!!

[George]

For my sins, I've just watched the goals back.

 

Thought we were a bit lucky with ours. 9/10 a foul is given when you jump up with the keeper and he fails to claim it.

 

I'm not sure you could say Pope lost his man for their first. He was right next to him. Touching. However, he did get out jumped and could/should have done better.

 

Their 2nd is some of the worst defending I've ever seen. The slowest 'defence splitting pass' in history right through the middle of our statues...i mean defenders. I showed it to a bloke at work and he just laughed and said "wow, I can see why you're bottom of the football league!" It was THAT bad.

[pensioner]

Stat wise better team, more shots that all season , but when the opposition have spells on top we need to learn to tighten up and get through it .

 

I wouldn't call Vales efforts "shots" as they were so week even a pensioner could have saved them. Compare and contrast the shots that Grimsby had all on target and stung Roos' hands.

Yes we had more than usual but by God they must never practice shooting.